Philippine Commission

Philippine Commission
(or the Second Philippine Commission)
Philippine Commission; (or the Second Philippine Commission)
Type
Type	unicameral; (1900–1907); ; upper house; (1907–1916) of the Philippine Legislature
History
Founded	March 16, 1900
Disbanded	October 3, 1916
Preceded by	Schurman Commission
Succeeded by	Philippine Senate
Leadership
Governor-General of the Philippines	William Howard Taft

The Philippine Commission was the name of two bodies, both appointed by the president of the United States, to assist with governing the Philippines.

The First Philippine Commission, also known as the Schurman Commission, was appointed by President William McKinley on January 20, 1899 as a recommendatory body.

The Second Philippine Commission, also known as the Taft Commission, was appointed on March 16, 1900 to provide civil government to areas under U.S. control. It relied on the presidential war powers of the US military government for its authority. In 1901, the Spooner Amendment to the Army Appropriations Act of 1901 gave the commission, "All military, civil, and Judicial powers necessary to govern the Philippine Islands".^[1] The Philippine Organic Act was passed by the United States Congress in 1902 enshrining into more permanent law the commission's legislative and executive authority. As stipulated in that act, the bicameral Philippine Legislature was established in 1907, with the Commission as the upper house and the elected Philippine Assembly acting as lower house. The Jones Act of 1916 ended the Commission, replacing it with an elected Philippine Senate as the legislature's upper house.

First Philippine Commission

On January 20, 1899, President McKinley appointed the First Philippine Commission (the Schurman Commission),^[2] a five-person group headed by Dr. Jacob Schurman, president of Cornell University, to investigate conditions in the islands and make recommendations. In the report that they issued to the president the following year, the commissioners acknowledged Filipino aspirations for independence; they declared, however, that the Philippines was not ready for it. Specific recommendations included the establishment of civilian government as rapidly as possible (the American chief executive in the islands at that time was the military governor), including establishment of a bicameral legislature, autonomous governments on the provincial and municipal levels, and a system of free public elementary schools.^[3]

Second Philippine Commission

From Philippines: A Country Study by Ronald E. Dolan:^[3]

The Second Philippine Commission (the Taft Commission), appointed by McKinley on March 16, 1900,^[4] and headed by William Howard Taft, was granted legislative as well as limited executive powers. Between September 1900 and August 1902, it issued 499 laws. A judicial system was established, including a Supreme Court, and a legal code was drawn up to replace antiquated Spanish ordinances. A civil service was organized. The 1901 municipal code provided for popularly elected presidents, vice presidents, and councilors to serve on municipal boards. The municipal board members were responsible for collecting taxes, maintaining municipal properties, and undertaking necessary construction projects; they also elected provincial governors."^[5] On July 4, 1901, Taft became governor of a civil administration for the Philippines.^[6] This regime, called the Insular Government, administered the country until 1935.

"The Philippine Organic Act of July 1902 stipulated that... a Philippine Legislature would be established composed of a lower house, the Philippine Assembly, which would be popularly elected, and an upper house consisting of the Philippine Commission. The two houses would share legislative powers, although the upper house alone would pass laws relating to the Moros and other non-Christian peoples. The act also provided for extending the United States Bill of Rights to Filipinos and sending two Filipino resident commissioners to Washington to attend sessions of the United States Congress. In July 1907, the first elections for the assembly were held, and it opened its first session on October 16, 1907."^[5]^[7]

Membership

Leaders

The body was led by the governor-general of the Philippines:

William Howard Taft (1901–1904)
Luke Edward Wright (1904–1905)
Henry Clay Ide (1905–1906)
James Francis Smith (1906–1909)
William Cameron Forbes (1909–1913)
Francis Burton Harrison (1913–1916)

Other members

Secretary of finance and justice:

Name	Month started	Month finished
Secretaries of finance and justice
Henry Clay Ide	September 1, 1901	September 24, 1906
James Francis Smith	September 25, 1906	June 30, 1908
Gregorio S. Araneta	July 1, 1908	October 30, 1913
Victorino Mapa	November 1, 1913	January 14, 1917

Secretary of the Interior:

Name	Month started	Month finished
Secretaries of the Interior
Dean C. Worcester	September 1, 1901	1913
Winfred Thaxter Denison	1913	1916

Secretary of commerce and police:

Name	Month started	Month finished
Secretaries of commerce and police
Luke Edward Wright	September 1, 1901	February 1, 1904
William Cameron Forbes	February 1, 1904	1909
Charles Elliott	1910	1913
Clinton L. Riggs	1913	1915
Eugene Reed	1915	1916

Secretary of public instruction:

Name	Term started	Term finished
Secretaries of public instruction
Bernard Moses	September 1, 1901	1902
James Francis Smith	1902	September 28, 1906
W. Morgan Shuster	September 28, 1906	1909
Newton W. Gilbert	1909	1915
Henderson Martin	1915	1916

Philippine members (1901–1909):

Name	Term started	Term finished
Philippine members of the Philippine Commission
Benito Legarda	September 1, 1901	December 21, 1907
Trinidad H. Pardo de Tavera	September 1, 1901	March 1, 1909
Jose Ruiz de Luzuriaga	September 1, 1901	1913

Philippine members (1909–1913):

Name	Term started	Term finished
Philippine members of the Philippine Commission
Rafael Palma	December 21, 1907	1913
Juan Sumulong	March 1, 1909	1913
Jose Ruiz de Luzuriaga	September 1, 1901	1913
Gregorio S. Araneta	1909	1913

References and notes

^ "The Spooner Amendment". scribd.com. n.d. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
^ Halili 2004, p. 174.
^ ^a ^b Dolan 1993.
^ ^a ^b Halili 2004, p. 179.
^ ^a ^b Dolan 1993, p. 28.
^ Taft, William (1908). "Inaugural Address as Civil Governor of the Philippines". Present Day Problems. Ayer Publishing. ISBN 978-0-8369-0922-7.
^ "The Philippine Bill of July 1902". Filipiniana.net. July 1, 1902. Archived from the original on February 28, 2009. Retrieved January 7, 2008.

Bibliography

Dolan, Ronald E., ed. (1993). Philippines: A Country Study (4th ed.). Washington, D.C.: GPO for the Library of Congress. ISBN 0-8444-0748-8.
Halili, Christine N. (2004). Philippine History. Manila: Rex Book Store. ISBN 978-971-23-3934-9.

External links

"List of Senators". Senate of the Philippines. Archived from the original on February 7, 2007. Retrieved March 28, 2008.
"The LAWPHiL Project – Philippine Laws and Jurisprudence Databank". Arellano Law Foundation. Archived from the original on November 29, 2001. Retrieved September 16, 2006. NB: very little material (if any) actually online
"Acts of the Philippine Commission". LawPH.com. Retrieved September 13, 2010.NB: very little material (if any) actually online

[1] "The Spooner Amendment". scribd.com. n.d. Retrieved August 23, 2024.

[FOOTNOTEHalili2004[httpsbooksgooglecombooksidgUt5v8ET4QYCpgPA174_174]-2] Halili 2004, p. 174.

[FOOTNOTEDolan1993-3] Dolan 1993.

[FOOTNOTEHalili2004[httpsbooksgooglecombooksidgUt5v8ET4QYCpgPA179_179]-4] Halili 2004, p. 179.

[FOOTNOTEDolan1993[httpswwwlocgovresourcefrdcstdyphilippinescount00dola_0sp66_28]-5] Dolan 1993, p. 28.

[6] Taft, William (1908). "Inaugural Address as Civil Governor of the Philippines". Present Day Problems. Ayer Publishing. ISBN 978-0-8369-0922-7.

[7] "The Philippine Bill of July 1902". Filipiniana.net. July 1, 1902. Archived from the original on February 28, 2009. Retrieved January 7, 2008.

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v t e National legislatures of the Philippines
Congress Senate House of Representatives
Historical	Malolos Congress (1898–99) Philippine Commission (1900–1907) Philippine Legislature (1907–1935) National Assembly of the Commonwealth (1935–1941) National Assembly of the Second Republic (1943–44) Commonwealth Congress (1945–46) Congress (1946–1972; 1987–present) Batasang Pambansa (1978–1986)

v t e Legislative periods of the Philippines
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U.S. insular territory	2nd Philippine Commission Philippine Legislature 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th Constitutional Convention
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